Seventeen million dollars is the estimated starting price for a Mercedes 540 K ‘Spezial Roadster’, 1937 , to be offered by the house Gooding & Company in the traditional auction held on 18 and 19 August under the Competition Elegance in Pebble Beach, California, USA-the world’s most prestigious.
The price of $ 17 million -nothing exaggerated in the world of auctions, contrary to what some media say the motor is justified by the uniqueness of the model and its origin. This unit belonged to the Prussian royal family, specifically the Baroness Gisela Von Krieger, who saved the car to send to Switzerland at the beginning of World War II in 1942.
After the war, the Baroness she moved to USA and took her to the Mercedes 540 K ‘Spezial Roadster’. Over the years the Baroness returned to Switzerland, but left the car stored in a garage, a situation in which he was more than 30 years until she found him, still in original condition, an American collector who restored at the level of competition.
The model 540 K began to be manufactured in 1936 and was the most luxurious and expensive model of Mercedes at the time. Rode 8-cylinder engine cylinder 5.4 litres which delivered 180 hp thanks to which it was supercharged by a Roots compressor online. It produced a total of 400 units by the end of the 30′s, of which only 26 had this unique bodywork ‘Spezial Roadster’ designed by Hermann Ahrens and built by the company Sindelfingen subsidiary of luxury Mercedes.
This model, although it could be seen as a sports car, reached 100 km/h in 16.4 seconds, and over 150 km/h top speed thanks to its powerful engine and technical solutions such as independent front suspension. This particular version ‘Spezial Roadster’ only manufactured between 1937 and 1938.
The price of the Mercedes may seem exaggerated, but not so much by the numbers reaching old Ferrari at auction. A 250 GTO of 1962 built for Stirling Moss has been auctioned recently for more than 35 million dollars (28 million euros to change) making it the most expensive car in history. The previous record had achieved another Ferrari, a 250 TR with which the American driver Phil Hill won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1958 and had reached 25 million in auction (more than 20 million euros). Be seen whether the Mercedes 540 K of the Baroness Von Krieger exceeds these figures.